He had blood results come back from the lab as a match for a break-in at a jewelry store, and a suppression hearing in superior court, and already on his desk was the first new complaint of the day-a theft of wallets in which the credit cards had been used, leaving a trail for Patrick to trace.

At the far end of the pocket was a patch of green where sun must fall during some part of the day-a twisted, ancient tree, a few flourishing bushes, some grasses-all surrounding a tiny pool of water fed by a mere drip of a spring that trickled down the side of the rock through that hole above.